FORT BEND COUNTY, Texas — Fort Bend County Judge KP George claimed he would be “victorious” in clearing his name from a criminal investigation into him and his former chief of staff.
George was indicted for mispresenting identity as a candidate. On Tuesday, his attorney filed a motion seeking to dismiss that charge.
A warrant claims George was aware an employee used a fake social media account to post racist attacks against him during his re-election campaign.
On Tuesday, George appeared during a commissioner’s court meeting after protesters spent the morning calling for him to resign.
“It’s a shame people here have been deceived by politicians and they have made themselves the victims,” Fort Bend County resident Eduardo Lopez De Casas said.
“The evidence presented so far is very strong,” Mary Jane Nowak said.
Prosecutors said George was aware his former chief of staff Taral Patel used a fake Facebook account to post racist messages targeting George during his 2022 re-election campaign. When Texas Rangers searched George’s home, they claimed he tried to reset his phone back to factory settings.
The chair of the Fort Bend County Republican Party is leading the calls for George to resign.
“It’s election interference by peddling fake racism and that should outrage everyone in Fort Bend County. Republican, Democrat and Independent,” chairman for the Fort Bend County Republican Party Bobby Eberle said.
Other elected officials outraged include the Fort Bend County Treasurer Bill Rickert, who joined the calls for George to resign.
“Guilty verdict or innocent verdict, in this case ... doesn’t mean a whole lot. The well-documented events are there, right? And those hurt us,” Rickert said.
Prior to Tuesday’s commissioners court meeting, George did not answer questions from reporters. No one spoke out during the meeting about the charges. The judge later read a prepared statement from his office and did not take questions from KHOU 11, claiming he has a right to due process.
“We are certain that we are going to be victorious in that effort. My attorney filed a writ to dismiss the charges, meantime I will continue to serve the people of Fort Bend County which I overwhelmingly ... elected in 2022 to serve for a second term,” George said.
The motion filed by George’s attorney also asks a judge to dismiss the charge, claiming the indictment is unconstitutional.
“The motion is based on a recent Texas Court of Criminal Appeals opinion that forbids any district attorney from exercising his or her constitutional authority to prosecute certain Election Code crimes without first obtaining permission from the Texas Ethics Commission in Austin,” the Fort Bend County DA’s Office said in response to the motion.
They said their investigation into George is still ongoing.
George’s attorney told KHOU 11 he believes the motion will be accepted by a judge. The case is expected to be discussed during a hearing in two weeks.